2012 28th Annual Trans Am Nationals

Trans Ams are timeless. That mantra was repeated in multitude at the 28th Annual Trans Am Nationals held in Dayton, Ohio, August 24-26, 2012. “It’s been a decade since the last Trans Ams and Firebirds were produced, but the Firebird hobby is still flying high,” says Scott Scheel, judging chairman of the Trans Am Nationals.

Held at the Dayton Marriott hotel, 383 Pontiac F-bodies were officially registered for last year’s event, representing every production-year Firebird except ’93, and 28 states and Canada.

2/17

“The Trans Am Nationals remains a strong summer roost for Pontiac-produced F-bodies,” Scheel continues. “As long as that’s the case, we will continue to be the pilgrimage site for fans of all Trans Ams, Formulas, and Firebirds.”

As in past years, the Trans Am Nationals included the points-judged car show with 32 classes, and trophies going to the winners in First to Third place; a Tipp City cruise; a swap meet; and a charity raffle, with proceeds going to A Special Wish Foundation, Dayton, Ohio Chapter.

The real treat, however, were special appearances by retired Pontiac Styling Studio Chief Bill Porter; Pontiac Head of Product Planning and Information Ben Harrison; automotive author Gary Witzenburg, and his wife, Jill.

Porter is credited with the styling of the 701⁄2 Trans Am and Firebird, and the color Brewster Green, which was available which was available from Pontiac in ’73 only.

9/17With the value of ’69 Trans Ams, you’d think that owner Steve Karew of Red Bank, New Jersey, would have put armed guards around his example shown here.

SHOW WINNERS

Special Awards

Owner

Car

Winners’ Circle Best of Best

Carl Hessick

’87 GTA

Best of Show

Shane & Melissa Armstrong

’97 Trans Am

HPP Award

George Berg

’72 Trans Am

Special Wish

Angela Naff

’99 Trans Am

Marriott Award

Tom Martens

’69 Firebird

Jim Emmel Award

Angela Naff

’99 Trans Am

Show & Shine

Rick Geiger

’01 Trans Am

Harrison says he was instrumental in adding the F-body, G-body, and X-body to Pontiac’s portfolio.

Gary Witzenburg wrote the popular book, Firebird! America’s Premier Performance Car, and Jill Witzenburg was the first female professional in Pontiac’s in-house public relations department, helping promote the Trans Am Territory events in the late ’70s.

The four GM employees treated attendees to a seminar, which included Porter’s inspiration for the design of the Honeycomb wheel, the Brewster Green exterior color, and the “bullet” mirror; and Harrison’s memories of the standard features shared between the ’69 GTO Judge and the ’69 Trans Am, and the very popular Formula steering wheel.

The 29th Annual Trans Am Nationals were held August 23-25, 2013. Activities included an informal gathering of Firebird Sky Bird, Red Bird, and Yellow Bird limited editions. For more information, visit www.tanationals.com.